It Burns
by Maruba
Summary: AkuSai High School AU. Axel has just moved to a new town, gained a new life. He didn't need anything holding him back. However, he has one BIG problem. He hates being touched. However, a run in with a blunette in his new class may just help him learn to break out of his shell, and learn that maybe touching fire...doesn't always need to burn.
1. New School

Disclaimer: If I owned Kingdom Hearts I wouldn't be writing FAN fiction. Only one I'm doing for this story.

* * *

 _Deep breaths. Deeeeeeep breaths._

 _Don't look at me._

 _Don't fucking look at me._

Axel felt like he was going insane. This wasn't fair. This wasn't fucking fair. The fifteen year old didn't want to go back to school he _couldn't_ go back to school he was freaking the fuck out! He pulled his arms tighter around his body. Stupid fucking therapist...he just got out of his last fucking stupid home! Even Reno agreed he shouldn't be at school! But no, no the fucking therapist had decided that HE HAD THE ALL KNOWING AUTHORITY over the red head's life.

Stupid stupid man with his fucking credentials... Didn't know what the fuck he was talking about. Fortunately, Axel's cousin Reno, now his caretaker, had decided to move to an entirely different city when Axel moved in with him. They now lived with Reno's boyfriend, Rude, in a place where Axel's "friends" and "family" would never find him. The therapist was here too.

...

Yay...

Axel walked into his new classroom, B303. He sat in the farthest back corner he could find and sat down, immediately pulling a notebook and looking into it. He wasn't looking at anything in particular...he was just...looking. Slowly other students began to file into the class and sit around him. They were all so freickin loud...

Suddenly a bluenette sat next to him. Damn! Axel sat here to be left alone! He looked over a little bit and couldn't help but stare. The boy...had amazing eyes. They were a piercing gold, matching perfectly with his stone cold face. His blue hair framed his face and stuck up in the back like the butt of a duck but his eyes... His eyes were the most noticeable part of him. They...glowed some how. As though to hypnotize people into walking into some proverbial darkness. They looked too wicked to do anything else.

"Can I help you?" Axel snapped out of his trance to see the boy staring back at him, a slight look of irritation of his face. It was then Axel noticed the surprisingly prominent scar on the boy's face in the shape of an "x". "You're staring at me."

"Sorry." Axel quickly muttered and turned back to his notebook, trying to make himself look busy, and probably failing.

"You're new here." It was was more of a statement than a question. "Who are you?"

"My name is Axel." He said. "Got it memorized?"

"I can try." Came a snarky remark. After a few seconds the boy looked up and raised a questioning eyebrow and Axel's confused face. "What?"

"Aren't you going to tell me your name?" He asked. "I mean, that's generally how these things work, right? You ask me my name, I tell you to get it memorized, and then you say yours? After memorizing mine of course." The boy rolled his eyes.

"If you have to know, my name is Saïx." Saïx said, finally relenting. "Not that you'll need it. I'm not interested in friendships."

"Fine, I'm not interested either." Axel muttered, turning away from Saïx once again. Guess what? He was glad the kid he was stuck next to had a stick up his ass. Maybe if Axel was enough of a jerk, this Saïx kid would go away and then he'd never have to talk to anyone ever again. Ah the good life. Axel turned to say something again before being interrupted.

"Alright class, we have a new student joining us today!" The overly cheery voice of their teacher bounced sharply on the walls. Axel remembered her name as Ms. Aeris. He felt like he wasn't going to like Ms. Aerie very much. "Axel, how about you stand up and introduce yourself?" He tried to shake his head but she motioned him up to the front of the class, finally gently pulling him up from his seat.

As she dragged him to the front of the class he ripped his arm away from her and followed with a slight scowl on his face. How dare she touch him... How fucking dare when?! She didn't even ask! She didn't have the fucking right to touch him!

"Alright Axel, tell us something we don't know about you."

"You mean aside from everything?" He asked with a raised eyebrow. Like legit, what the fuck? "Fine. My name is Axel Sinclair, I am fifteen years old, and my two favorite hobbies are gaming and dancing. Can I sit down now?" Ms. Aeris nodded and motioned him to his seat, this time not laying a hand on him. He quickly sat down as she began her lesson. It was something on plants. The pink haired kid looked into it. Axel, however, was not.

* * *

After class Axel hung back till everyone was gone to make his way to the door. He didn't want to bump anyone on his way out. As he walked out however he was stopped by the feeling of a hand on his shoulder. He flinched away and turned, ready to bite the person's head off. He stopped when he saw those golden eyes.

"I just wanted to see if it was all the time or just because a teacher touched you." Saïx explained, taking his hand off the boy's shoulder. Axel glared.

"You..." He growled, trying to express his emotions. "You don't get to decide you want to test it out! I'm not a toy, got it memorized?!" Saïx simply walked past him, not even looking back. "Hey! I'm not done with you!"

"I'll see you tomorrow." That was the quiet response Axel got and the Saïx was gone, having made his way around the corner and away from the angry red head. Axel sighed. It wasn't even fucking worth. He wouldn't see him tomorrow. He didn't want friends.

* * *

"So, Axel, how was your day?"

"It was fine asshole."

"Axel, we talked about respect. My name is Dr. Shinra, not 'asshole'."

"Whatever."

"We will work more on that later. So, about your day, did you make any friends?"

"...No."

* * *

So this was a prompt my kohai gave me. She suggested an AkuSai fic where Axel was afraid of being touched. I have a very similar thing that I've been working on, so a lot of Axel's thoughts are like mine from the past. And why is Axel so angry? Well...you'll just have to stick around and find out.

PLEASE REVIEW


	2. New Friend

Alright, so to clear up Axel's current living situation, just in case there was any confusion. Reno is twenty years old and is Axel's older cousin who currently has custody of him. The two of them live with Reno's partner (and I mean that in every sense of the word) Rude in a two bedroom apartment.

* * *

"Axel! Get up! I have to leave in forty five minutes! Get your ass up and out of bed before I dump my coffee on your face yo!"

Axel groaned into his pillow. He didn't want to wake up yet! It was too early! He looked at the clock. 6:45. Yeah, way too fucking early. He sat up and groggily looked around before flopping himself out of bed and trudging his way to the kitchen table. A bowl of cereal and an egg coated in sriracha was placed in front of him next to a mixture of coffee and hot chocolate. Apparently Reno felt like being nice today.

"So, ready for a new day?" Reno asked, sitting down to eat his own, identical breakfast. Axel shrugged. "Well... React please!"

"What do you want me to say?!" Axel finally yelled, staring Reno in the face. "Yesterday was fine. Today's going to be fine." He leaned back drank his chocolate mixture, looking away from his cousin's face and trying not to look back. He figured he wouldn't see hurt in Reno's blue eyes. The twenty year old was too used to this by now. He was afraid, however, that just once he might.

"Just so long as you're going to be okay yo." Reno said, drinking from his mug once again. Axel mentally thanked him for not pressing the issue. And for forgiving him. Reno was the only member of his living family that he could still tolerate. He wouldn't know what to do if Reno decided he wasn't worth. Reno was all he had left. He couldn't go back home...

"Yo!" Axel snapped out of his thoughts to see his cousin's fingers snapping before his eyes. "Get dressed!" Axel nodded and ran to his room as Reno cleaned up breakfast. He quickly got dressed and sat on his bed. The morning didn't actually take much work for him. His style was simple. Jeans, combat boots, tshirts, and hoodies. Hoodies were nonnegotiable.

About ten minutes later the redheads were in car and on the road, Reno visibly ecstatic to see Rude again when he got home, as the man had been one a business trip to Thailand for the past month. This would be the first time since Axel moved in that he would see Rude. They'd met before, of course, but never lived together.

Axel stepped out of the car in front of the school and said a quick goodbye to Reno before walking off. School wouldn't start for another twenty minutes, and because he didn't feel like hanging out in the cafeteria, he was, for the most part, alone. He made his way into the library and sat down at a table, putting headphones in his ears and resting his head on his arms. He shut his arms and let the music carry him away.

Twenty minutes later he sat in the same seat he had claimed yesterday, listening to music and drawing dragons in his notebook. He had a few more minutes till class started. Time to be completely unproductive. He looked up and pulled out a headphone when he heard some shuffling next to him. Right there, in the same seat as before, was Saïx.

"...So, do you think you can sit somewhere else?" Axel asked, not even bothering to be polite. He didn't feel like being around people right now.

"Probably." Saïx continued to pull out his stuff, not making a singling attempt to move. Axel raised an eyebrow at him, causing the blunette to look over. "I'm not moving, I always sit in this seat. So either deal with it or move." Axel glared a little bit and looked back down at his notebook. Rude much? He snickered a bit to himself. "What's so funny?"

"Nothing."

"Tell me."

"No."

"Tell me. Now."

"Fine! You're rude and my cousin's boyfriend's name is Rude!" Axel snapped, trying to explain. "So now you're dating my cousin!" Saïx stared at him.

"Well, is he hot?" He finally asked, causing the redhead to look at him in confusion. "Your cousin. Is he hot?"

"Not unless you have a thing for a redheads." Axel said, leaning back and staring at the sealing.

"I have a thing for redheads."

"You are disgusting!"

* * *

After school that day it was up to Axel to walk home. It wasn't far, only about a half hour walk. Reno would have driven him if he hadn't had to work. Axel sighed, putting in his headphones once again and beginning his walk.

About ten minutes on he had the uncomfortable feeling that he was being followed, he turned to see it who his was only to see a familiar blue mop.

"Are you stalking me?" Axel asked, pulling out a headphone. Saïx stopped next to him and looked at him. "I don't have anything valuable at my house except for a play station and a Nintendo 3DS. If you take either of those I will fucking shank you."

"I'm not interested in stealing your shit." Saïx said. "I live in the Pamosa complex." Axel's eyebrows furrowed. "You're so weird. What's your problem."

"I live in the same complex... I have for the past week." Axel said. "Why haven't I seen you before?"

"Maybe you don't go outside." Saïx said. "Ever."

"Well, you wouldn't be wrong." The pair walked in silence for the rest of the walk and entered the complex. Axel didn't even know why he walked with Saïx. He didn't even like Saïx, right? Well, maybe he could learn to. He sighed and turned to the blunette. "Listen...um...my cousin and therapist think I need to socialize more so...if you ever want to come over and hang out...you can."

"Sure." Saïx said. "My mom probably wants me out of house more anyway." He put out his hand for Axel to shake and then pulled it away. "Right. No touching."

"I'm not comfortable with touching, got it memorized?" Axel asked, throwing in his usual catch phrase just to seem...lighthearted was probably the right word.

"Heard you the first time, Sonic the Hedgehog."

"My hair isn't even blue!"

* * *

OKAY I promise I would've had this up sooner if I hadn't been suffering from a mixture of writers block and paranoia due to flash flood warnings. Anyhow, read, review, repeat!


	3. Carpe Diem

Alriiiight update time! Ugh, I need to like actually post the first chapter of my XigLux story...I'll do it tomorrow. I'm procrastinating.

* * *

Time skip a few months

Axel and Saïx had been friends for the past several months, and now it was rare for them to not be seen together. Axel, though he wouldn't admit it, was actually pretty glad to have a best friend. They actually had several of the same interests. Their favorite game was Final Fantasy 4, their favorite foods usually involved some form of hot sauce, and they both enjoyed dancing.

Currently the pair were in Axel's room, Axel lying on the black blanketed bed, Saïx laying on the bright red carpet. They were trying to study for Mr. Genesis's literature test, but Mr. Genesis's tests were impossible. There was almost no point in studying for them. He had this way of looking down at his students and looking stuck up and amused no matter what you did. At least it wasn't Mr. Sephiroth's physical education class. Axel had been trying to get out of that class for a month, ever since Sephiroth mocked him for falling while running his weekly mile.

"Any idea on what this means?" Saïx asked. Axel looked up from his own text book.

"Which phrase."

"Okay it's less a phrase and more the entire poem."

"Which one?"

"...There's more than one?"

"Dude..." Axel sighed. All this poetry was driving his head into a tunnel. In other words, he was going insane. Currently, they studying Carpe Diem by Robert Frost, one of the poems they'd been assigned to read over the week. One out of five. "Okay Genesis really should be teacher college what the fuck we are high schoolers!"

"I think it's cause Mr. Angeal and Mr. Sephiroth work here." Saïx explained. "They went to high school together and Angeal and Genesis got together and they made him promise to teach at the same place they did."

"Lame."

"I know right." Saïx shut his book. "Alright. My brain has exploded."

"Aren't you usually the hardworker?" Axel asked.

"Fuck you." Axel snorted at the retort and harsh glare he received from the blunette. "Besides, I'm hungry. Let's just eat food and get back to studying." Axel groaned. "What's your problem?"

"So our poem is Carpe Diem, right?" Axel asked. Saïx nodded. "That's means 'seize the day', right?" Another nod. "We aren't Carpe Dieming!" Saïx raised his eyebrow. "Come on! We're in high school! Aren't we supposed to be doing stupid things? Hijacking cars and getting drunk illegally?"

"Axel that's sounds more like a criminal than a teenager." Saïx commented. "High school is studying, Axel. It's studying and school and-"

"And it sucks." Axel said. Saïx paused for a moment and then finally nodded in agreement. "Listen, you know the campsite nearby?" His sighed and nodded, leading Axel to grin in glee.

"I know that expression." Saïx said with a frown. "That's the 'oh shit' expression. I hate that expression."

"Listen, I have marshmallows, hot dogs, and metal sticks." Axel explained. "Let's say we hop that fence and have us a campfire?"

"I'd say you're stupid." Saïx commented.

"And yet I'm a genius, got it memorized?" Axel said, leaving to grab the food. Rude and Reno wouldn't be coming home till the next morning, meaning they were clear for not getting caught, hopefully. He came back out with sticks and food. "Let's go."

There was very short argument that Axel ended up winning with his famous kitten eyes. They walked out of the apartment, Axel locking it on his way out, and headed to the campsite, hopping the fence and lighting the fire. They sat on a log and put their sausages over the fire.

According to Rude, whenever Axel and Reno sat near a fire, their hair lit up and looked like it had burst into flames. Apparently it was beautiful. Axel wondered what Saïx thought. Saïx eyes looked amazing, they would glowing from the reflection of the fire in front of them. Did Saïx think he was as pretty as he thought Saïx was, at least right now?

Wait, what was he thinking? Axel didn't care what Saïx thought. Saïx didn't think Axel was pretty. Saïx was into girls, right? Not that Axel didn't have fairly feminine hips, but he was still a boy! No. He didn't care at all what Saïx thought. Axel knew he was gay, but no. No he wasn't into Saïx.

He flinched when he felt something touch his hand and almost pulled away until he realized that the weight on his hand was keeping him from moving it. He looked down to see Saïx's hand on his, and looked up to see the golden eyes staring away from him.

"Um...excuse?" Axel asked. Saïx looked over and looked down at his hand, but didn't make any movement to remove his hand, serving to aggravate him more. "Did I say you could touch me?"

"You don't let the others touch you because they're them." Saïx said. "I get to touch you because I'm not them."

"That's not how it works!" Axel snapped, finally ripping his hand away.

"Fine, sorry." Saïx muttered. There was an awkward pause before Saïx spoke again. "If you don't mind me asking...why don't you like being touched?" Axel pulled his knees as close and hugged himself a little bit, pondering as to whether or not he could tell Saïx this. "You can trust me. I promise I won't tell anyone. We're friends."

"Well...if you absolutely promise." Axel looked at him seriously. Saïx nodded. "Alright... I live with Reno now because of this. When I was ten, I was in the car with my mom going to get some pain pills for a migraine I was having. When we were heading back, we got rammed in the side by a truck. My mom's side. I lived, though I was in the hospital for three months and had to have physical therapy for two years, but my mom...she didn't make it..."

"I'm so sorry..." Saïx said. Axel shrugged.

"That's just the beginning of it." He explained. "After that my dad started drinking...and then he started getting really angry. At first it was just yelling. He said it was my fault. It is though. I was the one who asked for medicine. But about a year later he started beating me, and a year after that he started using me as a...replacement for my mom. It really was my fau-"

"Stop it." Saïx said harshly, causing Axel to stop immediately. He was about start apologizing when Saïx spoke. "Don't you dare say it was your fault." Axel looked at him in a confused way. "You don't like being touched because of what he did to you, and now when people touch you it reminds you of that pain, right?"

"Right."

"I'm not going to tell you to stop blaming yourself." Saïx said. "I don't have any control over what you do, but I am going to tell you that it's not your fault. Even if it was your fault in anyway, what your father did was inexcusable. He's the adult, you're the child, and you just lost your mom. Yeah, he needed to grieve, but he also needed to step up and be there for you instead of falling apart and wrapping you in pain."

"Saïx...what're you...?"

"Listen, I know you don't believe me when I say it's not your fault." Saïx interrupted he question, and Axel nodded. "I still know it's not your fault, and I'm going to keep telling you that everyday until you believe me."

Axel didn't know how to respond to Saïx right now. The golden eyed boy was looking at him so intensely, saying words that made so much and so little sense. So many emotions all coming out at the same time. He reached for the blunette just slightly. Would he do it? _Could_ he do it?

Throwing all caution to the wind, Axel threw his arms around Saïx's shoulders and buried his face into to crook of the other's neck. Saïx was slow at first, gently wrapping his arms around the redhead as to not scare him before tightening his grip, refusing to let him go.

Saïx was right. Axel wouldn't let the others touch them because they were them. Saïx got to touch him because he wasn't.

* * *

Alright...that happened. This was supposed to be a filler chapter, what the fuck happened? Well... I'm sorry if they seem OOC. Please keep reading, enjoying, and reviewing.


	4. Dancing Through Life

Alright so...last chapter happened...I'm going to let these two take it slower for a bit before the true AkuSai begins. I'm having a lot of fun writing this. These two characters have always fascinated me. They were my first KH pairing and though I've fallen in love with so many others, these two will forever have a special place in my heart.

* * *

After that night, Axel began to let Saïx touch him more and more, and actually felt comforted by the closeness of his best friend's body. Of course, he'd never been to others apartment, or even seen any of his family, but he didn't mind so much. Saïx insisted they do all their things either away from the complex or at Axel's apartment. His apartment was cool though. He had bunk bed.

Of course...there were bits about Saïx that were...irritating to say the least. No one ever really talked to them, and Axel knew exactly why. It's because Saïx was terrifying to everyone who wasn't him. He did have people he was kind of interested in getting to know. That Demyx kid seemed pretty cool and so did Xigbar. He was just...curious.

"Hey, Saïx." Axel said, trying to get his attention. Saïx looked up from his book. Currently the pair were sitting under their favorite tree where they ate lunch everyday. It was a minimum day, so while it wasn't mandatory to attend the rally, something both Axel and Saïx were very happy about, they still weren't allowed to leave campus when they were under the age of eighteen. That left all non spirited students to their own devices. That meant Saïx could read and Axel could... Well Axel could do anything he wanted. Currently, however, he was researching the creation of the school's new dance team.

"What?" Saïx asked, turning back down to his book when he had confirmed that the redhead wasn't being mauled by a bear or another teenager.

"Do you know how to dance?" Axel asked. Saïx put down the book again and raised an eyebrow. "I'm just asking! I love dancing, and the school is setting up a dance team so I was thinking we should audition tomorrow. They're having it tomorrow."

"I'm not interested." Saïx said. Axel frowned but nodded. "Good. Why would you want to dance anyway?"

"Just because you're not interested doesn't mean I'm not interested." Axel said. "I've been taking dance classes for years."

"But...you'd be doing it alone..." Saïx said. "You do realize you are going to have partners that will touch you, right?"

"Dr. Shinra has been telling me to make steps to get over it." Axel said.

"You hate Dr. Shinra." Axel couldn't help but nod in agreement to Saïx's retort. "Besides, does Dr. Shinra know about our camp night?"

"Well...no." Saïx raised an eyebrow at him and Axel flared. "Yeah well Dr. Shinra doesn't have to know about that! He'll get at me for rebelling." Saïx snorted. "I know right, some therapist he is. Anyway, I miss dancing, I want to dance."

"Alright fine." Saïx said. "Dance all you want. Go to the auditions. Just don't come crying to me when someone touches you in a way you don't like." Axel glared. "What?! I'm just saying what's true."

"No you're saying what you know will piss me off."

"Whatever." Saïx said, now focusing on his book. Axel huffed and looked away. He then paused for a second to think.

"Are we supposed to fight like this?"

"It would be boring if we didn't."

* * *

The next day Axel showed up to the dance room in a tank top and a pair of sweat pants, ready to show off his moves. He'd been really athletic as a kid. He took gymnastics, tumbling, and all types of dance, including ballroom, ballet, and flamenco. He used to dance with his mother all the time before she died.

He sat with a lot of other kids he remembered. There were the best friends from Ms. Aeris's class, Marluxia and Larxene. Of course they'd try out for this type of thing. There was Xigbar, who was also a big part of the school's leadership department. He was basically the stereotypical hype man. He looked around, pinpointing faces of boys and girls everywhere. Even Demyx was there, but not as a dancer. He ran the music.

"Number 8, Axel Sinclair!" Axel ran up to the center of the stage as soon as his name was called. He stood there and waited for his music to start, and his eyes almost flashed the second it did. He theme. He didn't know the name of the song, but it had been his absolute favorite since he was a child. Be considered it to be his theme song.

There he was. Dancing, spinning, he OWNED the stage! This was his home, his kingdom. No one could take this feeling of euphoria from him. He smoothed to a stop as the music stopped and looked up to bow when it ended and that's when he saw them.

The glowing gold eyes in the back of the room. Wasn't Saïx not interested in dancing? What was he doing here?

"Mr. Sinclair, thank you for dancing us, we will contact you by the end of the week to tell you if you got in." The dance teacher said, looking up at him,. Axel nodded and bowed again, quickly grabbing his stuff and making his way out the room. He ran to Reno's car, currently being driven by Rude. He jumped into the passenger side and stopped, panting.

"...Are you okay?" Rude asked, starting the car and heading out of the parking lot.

"Yeah..." Axel said, chest rising at a very quick rate. "Just...freaked out for a second, got it memorized?"

"Got it memorized."

* * *

The next week Axel stood in the room giddily, bouncing on the balls of his feet. He got in, he was an official Departure High School Dancer. All he needed now was to start dancing.

"Alright students," the teacher started. Axel was pretty sure her name was Ms. Rikku. She was pretty cool. "So for the beginning I'll be assigning you dance partners. I know this isn't common, but this is what I did in my school." She went to the 'Al Bhed School of Arts' or something. Axel spaced out till he heard her say his name. "Axel Sinclair and Saïx Gaudo."

Wait...Saïx? Saïx actually auditioned?

Wait...Saïx's last name was Guado?

Saïx walked up to him and gave a small smirk at Axel's confused face. He leaned for and whispered in his ear.

"I couldn't stand the idea of someone else touching you."

* * *

WELL. IT HAPPENED AGAIN. Apparently I'm just not good at going slow. Anyhow, I hoped you enjoyed it and please review.


	5. MIA

a/n Sorry I haven't updated this in a while. I had a spur of writers block. Anyhow, let's start, shall we?

* * *

Time skip a few months...

 _Arifureta koi gokoro ni ima wana o shikakeru_  
 _Wazuka na sukima nozokeba_

 _Tsukamaete_

 _Tatoeba fukai shigemi no naka suberi komasete_  
 _Tsunaida ase no kaori n_ i _tada okasare teru_

Axel bowed and ran off the stage with Saïx, pulling off his sweaty mask as soon as they were in the dressing room. They were having what they had dubbed their "Night of Nights", a dancing performance for the school dance team, and Axel had suggested that he and his dance partner, Saïx of course, perform the Vocaloid song Cantarella. Fortunately, Ms. Rikku just happened to be a huge Vocaloid fan, allowing them to perform it. They were finally off the stage, and Axel's heart was pounding. He knew Marluxia and Larxene were going up next, but he couldn't be bothered to watch them. He didn't like them much anyway. Marluxia enjoyed invading other's personal space too much.

"So, how was that?" Saïx asked, pulling off his own mask. They both began changing into their costumes for the final number, a group number. "I think I was off for a split second there. I recovered pretty well though. Are Rude and Reno in the audience tonight?"

"Nah, they're at work." Axel replied, pulling on his black jacket with red fur. It was as if they wanted the dancers to suffocate on stage. Stage lights were hot! "I don't think I was off anywhere, yeah? I saw your recovery though. Nice cover. There's no way the audience noticed."

"First rule of the stage."

"The audience is stupid."

The pair fist bumped and Axel went and pulled his phone out of the bag he brought with him, taking a drink as he unlocked the screen, seeing that he had a message from Reno. That was weird, usually Reno said to never contact him at work unless it was a dire emergency, like if he was dying. Then it was acceptable to contact him. He opened the text and raised an eyebrow.

"Apparently Rude and Reno were going to be gone for longer than expected, so I have the house to myself for probably a week." Axel commented, tossing his phone onto his bag. "Kind of weird Reno decided to text me though."

"Well, you might have thought they died if you hadn't." Saïx commented, pulling on his own jacket, which looked exactly like Axel's except the fur was blue. "You don't think they used real fur in this, right?"

"Doubt it."

"Cool. I have extra money in my account on Friday, by the way." Axel looked over hopefully. "I think you know what they means."

"Buy a shit ton of extra spicy buffalo wings, take them to my house, and binge watch Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicles?"

"To put it bluntly."

"Sweet! I fucking love those chicken wings, got it memorized?"

"I've had that memorized for a long time." Saïx rolled his eyes and Axel grinned. His catchphrase could at times irritate his blue haired friend, but he didn't care. His catchphrase was awesome. If anything, he didn't say it enough. Now that, there, was a problem. He pulled on the rest of his outfit and headed out into the the wings to wait for the final dance, quickly followed by Saïx. He already Saïx's family wasn't here. Saïx was a very private person, and eventually Axel had stopped prodding. The blunette was impossible to get information from. The name Guado, though... Why did that sound so familiar?

They pair ran on stage and danced as they were told, Axel grimacing as he accidentally brushed Naminé. He preferred having more space on stage, but hey, he wasn't the director. Their dance was Love and Joy though, which really required more than Ms. Rikku had given them. At least it had gone pretty well. Afterwards, the entire crew went to get dinner, on the bill of the school, which surprised the dancers before they found out it was the principal Mr. Eraqus who was paying, not the other principal Mr. Xehanort, who would never do something like that. After dinner, Saïx and Axel bummed a ride off one of their fellow dancers, Xigbar, and made their way into Axel's apartment. Saïx had already decided to sleep over that weekend anyway, so they set up his sleeping bag on the ground and tossed their stuff on the couch, setting up for a fun weekend of anime, food, and video games.

* * *

A week later Axel was sitting on the carpet, staring at his phone. Family Guy was playing on his television but he wasn't really paying attention to it. He was more focused on his phone, waiting to buzz, ring, do something. Anything. He was getting nervous. By now Reno's manager Tseng would've called him to notify him that Reno had arrived safe and sound at the office and would be on his way home soon. Why hadn't he called yet? He needed to call!

He must have sat there for hours, just staring at the phone with his anxiety restricting his chest more and more until he felt like he couldn't breathe. He needed the phone to ring.

* * *

Another week passed and there was still no sign of Rude of Reno. It was starting to drive Axel crazy. He'd become far quieter, scared that if he said anything he might break down. He still kept his phone on constant charge, just in case Tseng or anyone tried to contact him with information. He was plugging in his phone again when he heard a knock at the door. He stood up and walked over, opening it to reveal to stony face of Tseng, and Reno's coworker Elena with him, giving Axel a small wave. He'd met them before, when Reno had decided to throw a party for a bunch of his coworkers after a particularly successful mission.

"Hi!" He quickly greeted them, moving to the side to let them in. He shut the door behind them and went into the kitchen as they sat at the dining room table. "Do you want anything to drink?" He got water for himself and looked at Tseng and Elena expectantly.

"Two waters Axel." Tseng requested, followed

by a nod from Elena. He brought over three waters and sat across from them, looking at them expectantly. "I imagine you have a lot of questions right now, so let me take this moment to answer the most vital ones. No, Rude and Reno, as far as we are aware, are not dead." Axel couldn't help but breath a sigh of relief. "However, we are not currently aware of their location."

"...Wait, what?"

"Rude and Reno are...MIA..." Elena said, trying to sound as calm as possible as to not frighten the teenager. "They're missing in actio-"

"I know what MIA means!" Axel yelled. "How the hell did they get MIA?! Are they going to come back?! Do I have to go into foster care?! Or back with my father?!"

"Axel, calm down." Tseng said. Axel nodded and quickly took a drink of water. "We don't know how they went missing, all we know is that they are missing. We don't think they're dead, they're hopefully alive, which means they will hopefully return. As for your current living situation, we will do our best to keep you where you are." Axel nodded, clutching his water glass. Elena walked over to him and put a sympathetic hand on his back, to which Axel shot her the harshest glare he could, leading her to retreat back to Tseng. The pair nodded to Axel and left, leaving the distraught teenager at the table. He heard the door open again and looked over to see Saïx.

"...What's wrong?" Saïx asked.

"Rude and Reno are MIA."

"...I'm so sorry."

* * *

Yep. Sadness. Anyhow, please review and I hope you enjoyed this poorly written chapter.


	6. Guado

a/n Sorry it's been so long! School is a bitch. I'm in my senior year of high school and like almost all my classes are AP (advanced placement) and the work load is immense. Anyhow, enough of my bitching. Let's start, shall we?

* * *

"Saïx...can I spend the night at your house?"

Axel had been home alone for about a week and half. He was currently sitting in the school dance studio with his best friend, both of them leaning against the mirror. His left leg was pulled to his chest and he had the other out in front of him. They were technically supposed to be stretching for their practice, but Axel didn't really feel like dancing today. He only came because he'd skipped a couple of days the prior week. He felt obligated to show up. Saïx looked at him and frowned.

"I don't know Axel..." He said. Axel gave him a desperate look. "Why can't we just stay at your house like we usually do?"

"Please, Saïx." He whined. "I need to not be at my house tonight." When Saïx continued to give him skeptical look he flopped down onto his side with his head is Saïx's lap. "Please? Please? Please? Please? Pleeease? Plea-"

"Oh my god fine." Saïx finally relented. "But don't touch anything, okay?"

"Got it." Axel nodded, grinning. They'd been best friends for months and this was the first time Axel had been to Saïx's apartment. He was excited.

* * *

"Alright just put your backpack there." Saïx said, pointing at a low shelf. Axel set down his fiery red backpack next Saïx's deep blue one. He looked around at the apartment. It was nice. _Really_ nice. In Axel's apartment you could tell three people lived there, as he hadn't wanted to clean up. Reno's doodles were all around the apartment, and the paperwork of both the adults managed to take up a small piece of each table. There was almost always at least one dirty dish in the sink, and the counters had a small amount of left over cooking spices that made the room smell like some kind of garlic concoction. The bathroom counters were a mess because of Axel and Reno's various pills and all their tooth brushes and various face products.

Saïx's house was polished. The floors shone and there wasn't a single piece of...well anything out of place. The entire apartment smelled like lysol and the tables were shiny and completely clear of all clutter. There were pictures of landscapes all over, and Axel walked around, trying to find any pictures of Saïx or his family. He finally found one over a small set of shelves that contained books and candles of various scents.

In the picture Saïx appeared to be a few years younger, maybe thirteen, and he was a black suit with a deep red tie. He stood with his back straight, with a serious face, but you could tell he wasn't quite an adult. He looked kind of like a child wearing his father's clothes and pretending he had adult problems. Axel smiled. It was kind of cute. Then he noticed the tall, blue haired man next to Saïx in the picture, the one with the...impressive hairstyle.

"Saïx, why do you have a picture with Seymour Guado?" He called. Seymour Guado was a politician, noted for attempting to pass incredibly homophobic policies and being an unabashed supporter of the "Kill All Sodomites Bill". Axel had no idea how the man continued to have influence in national government, but he did. "Do we need to have a talk?"

"No, we don't." Saïx said, walking over from his kitchen. They both looked up at the picture together in a moment of silence, and then the blunette opened his mouth again. "Seymour Guado is my...father..."

"What?!"

 _Seymour..._

 _Seymour Guado..._

 _Saïx Guado..._

How did he not make this connection before!

"Your father is the most homophobic asshole in politics...?" Axel asked. He just wanted to clarify. Maybe Saïx had said...uncle, and he just misheard. Unfortunately, it was not so. Saïx had nodded. "Why didn't you tell me!"

"Well, it's not something I really proud of!" Saïx snapped. Axel looked at him incredulously, and then back at the picture. Now that he really thought about it, there were quite a few similarities between the man and his son. There was of course the blue hair, but they also seemed to hold themselves in the same way. Their faces were similar, and they had the same self confidant smirk. It was actually kind of creepy. People told Axel that he and Reno looked similar, but this was a whole different story. Of course, Axel looked almost nothing like his father. "I'm sorry I snapped, but it is true. Seymour Guado is my father, but I don't agree with anything he says. He's a total douchebag."

"You can say that again..." The red head muttered. "I'm sorry I freaked out, I was just really, really surprised. He doesn't live here, right?"

"No, he lives in a mansion on the coast. Shortly after this picture was taken I decided I didn't want to live with him, so he agreed to get me this apartment. He pays my rent every month and sends me food for money. I just work so I can extra cash."

"But I remember you saying you lived with your mom or something."

"My mom died of lung cancer when I was nine Axel. I lied when I said that. Sometimes people do that." There was a pause. "...Sorry."

"It's okay. I get it." Axel said, waving his hand to signify that he was brushing it off. "Let's just go watch some Hellsing or something, okay?" Saïx smiled a little bit, clearly appreciative that Axel wasn't pushing the issue.

"Okay."

* * *

I UPDATED! HOORAY! This went on a temporary hiatus due to a mixture of writers block and sheer business. Just...UGH. Anyhow, I hope you enjoyed and please review.


	7. Want

a/n I currently have time to write because I was at work on Saturday (I teach kids improv classes) and then I did an adult improv class (none of my coworkers are in it but a bunch of hella cool people are) and I was about to start helping with the improv dojo and I had gone to get my dad (another improv teacher and performer) and I went to find him. I took one step off our backstage (it was like six inches off the ground and has all our sound and light equipment) and I ended up falling and severely spraining my ankle.

Not gonna lie a lot of this chapter was written while listening to "Anima Libera". *dances enthusiastically and then cries because of pain*

* * *

Axel stared up at the ceiling in Saïx's room. He was laying on the other boy's bed, surrounded by a soft, dark blue comforter. His mildly wet hair wasn't in its usual spiky fashion, but instead pooled around his shoulders. He listened the his friend taking a shower in the other room while he mentally traced designs in the ceiling. He watched a pair of dancers fly across the ceiling intertwined. They began to take shape in his mind as he slowly fell more and more into his imagination world.

One of them, the slightly smaller one, was covered in bright red flame. It was possibly made of flame. It flitted back and forth across the ceiling, weaving, spinning, constantly moving in a never ending sort of graceful chaos. Its body flitted and flickered as it turned and moved, never still never stopping. Beside it was another figure, slightly blue, and glowing like the moon. It stayed close to the flickering figure, almost acting as a stabilizer. It was less spinny, more stable. It stayed close to its partner, keeping it grounded, and they got closer and closer, their faces about to touch-

"Alright, showers all yours." Saïx said, walking out the shower in a pair of pajama pants, holding his clothes from the day in his arms. He dropped them in the laundry basket and tossed a towel to Axel. "Or did you already shower?"

"I mean that probably why my hair is damp." Axel said, sticking out his tongue. He used the tile to dry his hair more and tossed it, balled up, into the laundry basket. Saïx got onto the bed and pulled up his lap top, sitting next to his friend. The redhead put his head on the blunette's shoulder and watched as he pulled up youtube, probably to find some random MMD. His thoughts began to drift back to the dancers.

He of course knew the flickery fiery one was supposed be him. What else could it be? He'd been told so many times that he resembled a flame not only with his fire but in the way he spoke and moved. There was absolutely nothing else that figure could represent. But...what about the other one? What was that one? It was blue...a familiar kind of blue, and it glowed, like the moonlight, which always reminded him of a certain someone. Was...was the other dancer Saïx? He looked at the blunette at his side, watching as the golden eyes reflected his computer screen, flickering with an unknown emotion. Yes, the other dancer was Saïx. Their faces...moving closer together...spinning closer and closer...

"Hey, you want to dance?" Axel asked. "Demyx showed me a really good song the other day and I think it would be really fun to dance to, even if we don't have the choreography." Without waiting for an answer he grabbed the laptop and typed in the name of the song, pressing on some random lyric video and standing up. He started moving his body to the music and stared at Saïx, holding out his hand. Saïx stared at him for a few seconds before rolling his eyes and taking the redhead's hand, joining him in the dance.

Axel grinned and they began copying each other's movements, and then Saïx took the lead, as he usually did when they danced together, and started moving them to the beat, spinning his partner. Axel couldn't help but blush as his back was pulled tight to the chest of the other, and he grinned, pulling away and smirking flirtatiously at his dancing partner, swinging his hips and spinning once or twice. He lost his balance and grabbed at Saïx in an attempt to catch himself, but ended up being swung into the arms of his partner, held up off the ground by a pair of strong arms. Green eyes and gold eyes stared into each other, both teens panting from the exertion of the dance, and, in the heat of the moment, Axel leaned up and pressed his lips against the other's.

Saïx dropped him, and Axel quickly stood up, realizing what he'd done. He covered his mouth and back away quickly, back hitting the door. He fumbled for the handle, but just as he managed to grab it, Saïx yanked his hands away and pinned them above his head with one hand. Axel struggled and looked at Saïx, filling with panic.

"Saïx I'm sorry let me go please I don't want to die!" He begged, trying to get away. His friend continued to stare it. "Saïx please I'll lea-"

He was cut off by the feeling of Saïx's lips pressing roughly against his. His eyes widened in shock before eventually closing as he mustered the sanity to kiss back. Saïx's grip loosened and Axel wrapped his arms around the blunette's neck and the other's arms wrapped around his waist. After a minute they pulled apart, in need for air, and stared at each other.

"You're...not mad?" Axel asked. Saïx shook his head and pressed his face into the redhead's neck, breathing in his scent. Axel shivered a bit at the feeling. He pulled away and stared at Saïx, biting his lip at the hungry look in the other's eyes. It was like being stared down by a wolf. A very...attractive wolf. "You want this?" He was suddenly pinned to the bed, Saïx looming over him, gold eyes glowing.

"I want this more then you will ever understand." Saïx muttered, and then smirked. "My dad doesn't know this, but I'm gay. Really, really gay. And I don't just want this. I want _you_." Axel's heart was pounding at this point and he grinned giddily, and gave his own flirtatiously.

"Well then, I'm waiting." He purred. Saïx gave his own dominating growl and bent down, beginning their night of fun.

* * *

"You...bastard..." Reno growled, coughing up blood from his place hanging from the ceiling by a pair of handcuffs. Rude's own dead body was slumped in the corner, having been tossed there hours ago. Seymour stalked around the redhead in a circle, sneering. "Let me go! I have a cousin to take care of!"

"Please, I say the child from your...immorality." Seymour said, looking away just slightly. He was cleaning his gun, preparing it. "And now our turks will be much more effective without your faggotry holding them down."

"We're immoral?" Reno spat incredulously. "You kidnapped us! You killed my fiancé! You took me away from a cousin who desperately needed fa-!" One of Seymour's guards kicked Reno's face, causing the turk to growl like a feral animal. Seymour put the barrel of his gun between Reno's eyes, and Reno spat blood in his face. "Go to hell!"

"I'm afraid that's where you'll be." With a bang Reno fell to the ground, dead. Seymour cleaned the blood off himself as one of his guards walked up.

"What now sir?"

"Hm..." Seymour had to think for a moment. "I think I'll pay my son a visit."

* * *

DUH DUH DUUUUUH... Cliffhangers bros... Wow, story is about three chapters from being over.


	8. Pictures

a/n Alrighty then chapter 8. I'm going to try and write as much of this story as I can today.

* * *

Axel sat in the cafeteria, studying from his notes on "Pride on Prejudice", not entirely pleased that he had to write an essay that afternoon. Mr. Genesis was a slave driver with no understanding that Axel didn't really give a shit about the eighteenth-century gossip group that was this book. He enjoyed reading "The Crucible" and "Journey to the Center of the Earth". Those were at least interesting. This...well...it existed. That was really the nicest thing he could say about it. At least Darcy was kind of interesting.

"Hey." Axel looked up to see Saïx sit across from him. He put away his notes and focused his attention on the blunette across from him. Their relationship hadn't changed much since they had started dating, it'd just become more...physical. Yeah, physical was the right word. Fortunately, it wasn't too hot for Axel to wear a scarf. Class would probably be a little awkward with his hickeys showing.

"Hey." He responded. "What's up?"

"I have some bad news." Saïx said, looking away a little bit. Axel's brow furrowed and his head cocked in confusion. "My dad called last night. He's coming to visit. That means you can't stay over for a few nights."

"And we have to pretend we're not dating..." Axel muttered, putting his head on his folded arms, looking arm. Saïx reach over and flicked one of his spikes. "I get it, your dad can't know. It'll affect his campaign to have his son openly dating another boy."

"No that's not it." Saïx said, stopping him from saying anything else. "Don't ever think I'm ashamed of you. I'm ashamed of some of the things you do cause you're an idiot, but I'm not ashamed of you." Axel stuck out his tongue. "I'm not worried about my father's campaign, I'm worried about him trying to hurt you."

"Trying to hurt me?" Axel asked. Saïx nodded.

"My dad has a history a being violent towards homosexuals." He explained. "It's been hidden from the media, and I'm technically not supposed to breathe a word of it. But he's beaten people, even killed them. I'm afraid that if he found out about you... I just don't want to lose you." Axel frowned and stood, walking to the other side of the table and sitting next to Saïx. The blunette ran his fingers through his hair, avoiding Axel's face.

"Hey, nothing is going to happen to me." Axel assured. He pulled one of Saïx's hands away and forced the boy to look at him. "You're not going to lose me." He then grinned confidently. "Besides, what makes you think I'd let any out coot hurt me?"

"Dork." Saïx said with a small smirk, pushing Axel's face away. The redhead in turn smiled, and he leaned in to kiss his boyfriend. Right as Saïx's lips met his he heard a camera sound and a pair of giggles. They turned to see Larxene and Marluxia, pointing their phone at them and laughing their asses off.

"This is so going on Instagram!" Larxene said. Axel's eyes widened and he ran over, trying to grab the phone.

"Delete that picture!" Axel yelled. The likelihood of Seymour seeing the picture off Larxene's Instagram, but he couldn't take any chances. "Don't you dare post that! Delete it!"

"Tch, yeah right." Larxene said, turning away. Axel growled, reaching out to grab her phone. Marluxia stepped between them and wrapped his arm around Axel's shoulder, causing the redhead to freeze at the touch.

"Come on Axy, let her have some fun." Marluxia purred. Axel pushed him away and hissed. He was about to punch the pinkette before he saw a flash of blue between them. Suddenly Marluxia was on the ground being punched in the face repeatedly by a very angry Saïx. A group of teachers ran over and yanked them away from each other, escorting them to principal's office and leaving Axel and Larxene staring at where the fight had been moments ago.

"So, I guess they're getting detention today." Larxene said. Axel was about to respond when she walked away, leaving him all alone. He bit his lip. Saïx was getting detention...and it was all his fault. If he hadn't freaked out...if he hadn't frozen up when Marluxia touched him, then Saïx wouldn't be in trouble. No, instead Axel had to react in his usual way, forcing Saïx to step in and save him. He looked down at his shoes. He was such a failure. He wasn't worthy of Saïx.

Well, he could at least take notes for Saïx, or get his work, or anything really. If he couldn't be worthy, he could at least be useful, right? After all, Saïx wouldn't want him if he wasn't, and that was all he was good for, right? That's what his father said. He was useful for sex and nothing else. Absolutely nothing el-

No. No he was a human being. He didn't need to be defined by other people, he was defined by himself. And right now...

...

Right now he just wanted Saïx.

* * *

The walk home after school was boring without someone accompanying him. It was just Axel and his music, which was kind of comforting, but he'd been so used to the presence of another person at his side that it felt lonely to be alone, something that he wasn't used to. He used to love being alone. Now...well, now he didn't want to be. Maybe later, but definitely not now.

He was about to enter the apartment complex when a pair of rough hands grabbed him and yanked him back, quickly tying his hands behind his back. Before he could look up to see his attacker a blindfold was wrapped around his eyes and he was tossed onto someone's shoulder. He struggled as he felt someone tying his ankles behind his back and began yelling for help, only to have someone stuff what felt like a ball gag into his mouth. He felt himself being tossed into the back of what he thought was a van and heard a door slammed shut and an engine start, and felt himself being driven away as a man punched his head, knocking him unconscious.

* * *

Wow two chapters in one day. I might be able to finish this today.


	9. Gunshots

a/n Alright chapter 9 LET'S DO THIS! I'M PUMPED!

TW: homophobic language, death, suicide

* * *

When Axel came to he was laying on the cold floor of a dark room, almost completely naked except for his underwear. His hands were handcuffed behind his back and he suddenly realized he was in a lot of pain. He looked down to his torso and legs covered with cuts and bruises. How long...how long had he been down here? He groaned as he sat up, a dull pain radiating through his body. He shivered and pulled his knees close to his chest, the cold air immediately surrounding his body.

"Hello?" He asked the darkness, which of course didn't respond. He couldn't help but laugh at himself a little bit. Of course the darkness wouldn't respond. It was just darkness, it wasn't alive. "I'm such an idiot sometimes."

A door creaked open and heard the sound of someone being thrown down a set of stairs. Suddenly the light flashed on and Axel saw that he was in a basement. He heard a gasp and looked to see Saïx staring at him from a place on the floor at the bottom of the stairs, bruises beginning to grow on his arms, answering the question as to what the sound had come from. Saïx stood shakily and ran to him, bending at his side.

"Lovers reunited." Came a mocking voice from the top of the stairs, accompanied by footsteps slowly descending towards them. Saïx growled and moved himself in front of Axel, making himself large in an attempt to hide the thinner boy behind him. Axel peeked out the best he could and saw the frightening smirk of Seymour. "And in my house, how wonderful indeed."

"Let him go." Saïx said, practically shaking with rage. Axel couldn't take his off the other blunette. He stood so tall, so proud, he looked around like he owned the world. Seymour Guado was an utterly terrifying human being. "Just let him go, I'll make sure he doesn't breath a word of this. Just let him go and nothing has to go wrong."

"Oh I'm afraid I'm not going to do that." Seymour said, pulling out his phone. He brought up a picture and showed it to them, and Axel's heart stopped. It was the picture Larxene had posted of them kissing. "What is this? Would either of you like to explain?"

"I think a better question is why are you following a teenage girl's Instagram." Axel commented. Seymour pushed Saïx out of the way and kicked Axel in the stomach. The redhead fell to the ground, curling up and groaning in pain. Seymour continued to kick him till Saïx pushed him away. The two blunettes glared each other in the eyes before they both straightened themselves out.

"I don't. The picture was brought to me by one of my press managers." Seymour said, clearing his throat.

"Yeah, right." Axel said, rolling his eyes. Seymour made a move to attack him again but Saïx stepped in between.

"Axel, stop provoking him." He spat before turning to his father. "And you, stop this nonsense and let us go. We'll leave, we'll never breathe a word of this, and you'll never hear from either of us agai-"

"Shut up faggot!" Seymour yelled, punching Saïx in the face. Saïx cried out in pain and held his cheek, looking at the ground. "I'm doing whats best for you!" He pointed Axel, who was currently trying to figure out how to get off his handcuffs without Seymour noticing. "He tricked you! He converted you to one of _them_!"

"He didn't convert me to anything!" Saïx yelled.

"He made you-"

"He made me what dad?" Saïx asked, yelling at the top of his lungs. "A faggot? Guess what, I'm gay dad! I've always been gay! And I happen to be in a very happy relationship, so you need to fuck off!"

"Don't you dare talk to me that way boy!" Seymour punched Saïx in the stomach, and the younger blunette fell to his knees, clutching the stomach. Axel scooted over to him and glared at Seymour, who sneered back. The tall man moved to pulled something from his belt just as Axel managed to free himself. The redhead launched himself at the man and yanked his arm, only to find a gun being pointed at his face. The man's other hand grabbed him by the arm and he stared down the barrel of the gun, frozen in fear.

He clenched his eyes shut and waited to die, but he when he heard the sound of the gun, he didn't feel any pain. He hesitantly opened his eyes to see Seymour staring at some on the ground next him ground next to him, and he covered his mouth. Saïx was own the ground, blood pouring out of a hole in his head, his eyes absolutely lifeless. Axel fell to the ground on his knees to him with a cry of anguish and fisted his hair. He shook and growled.

"You... You bastard!" He yelled. He launched himself off the ground at the adult and started grabbing at the gun. The pair wrestled the gun between themselves, each planning on killing the other. Axel finally managed to knee Seymour in the nuts and grabbed the gun, holding it in both hands, pointing it at the adult on the ground in front of him. His pupils were narrow and he was shaking, body filling with adrenaline. He was one shot away from killing the one who'd destroyed his life.

"Tch." Seymour smirked, looking up at him. "Go ahead, do it. Or are you too scared fagg-" Axel pulled the trigger, not even giving the man the opportunity to finish his insult. His brains spread across the floor, and Axel scared, dropping the gun. He slowly sat down in-between the bodies, staring into space.

What was he going to do? He didn't have anyone left. No family to go back to, no other friends, and no more Saïx. He didn't have a left to go back to. At least not one that he wanted to go back to. His entire life began playing before his eyes and he whimpered, once again fisting his dirty red hair. Tears streamed down his face and he looked at the gun out of the corner of his eyes. Should he...? No, no he shouldn't. He couldn't! But...he wanted to. He knew what the gun would give him, and he knew it still had bullets. He wanted release. He wanted to give up, to give in. He brought the gun to his temple.

And he pulled the trigger.

* * *

I am in NO WAY promoting suicide! Don't commit suicide, suicide is not an option! If you are feeling suicidal, find someone who you know you can trust, or call this number:

1 (800) 273-8255

This is number for America's National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, available in both English and Spanish. Unfortunately America is the only one I know the number for, but just remember, if you think the world would be better off without you, it wouldn't. You are amazing, you are inspirational, and you are loved.


	10. Epilogue

a/n And now, the epilogue. I hope you all have enjoyed the story.

* * *

A young boy played in the sandbox behind his kindergarten, bright red hair looking like fire in the sun. His green eyes were filled with joy as he finished his castle. It may have seemed small, but to the five year old, it was an enormous fortress for a great empire he was building to conquer the world. He grabbed a pair of his toys, two faceless dolls, and started to talk as them.

"Wow, I'm so happy it's such a sunny day!" One doll said.

"That's cause our amazing ruler made it that way!" The other doll said. The young boy laughed to himself and then looked around, a little said he didn't have anyone to play with. That's when he spotted a blue haired boy sitting awkwardly on a bench all alone. The redheaded boy recognized him. He was the new student. What was his name...?

The boy walked over to the bench and sat next to his new classmate, his two dolls in his hands. He looked down at them and handed one to the blunette.

"Here, this is Rude. He's a secret agent." The boy said. The other one looked at him in confusion. "You can play with him if you want. This one is Reno. He's a secret agent too, and they're best friends. Or maybe more. I don't know." The boy continued staring at him, and the redhead fumbled. "Also, Reno has red hair, like me! Rude doesn't have any hair though, but that's okay. He looks kind of like an egg." The boy continued to not say anything. "Are you okay?"

"Hm? Yeah, I'm fine." The blunette said, staring down at Rude. "I just...it's kind of weird. I'm just nervous cause I just moved here."

"Would it help to have a friend?" The redhead asked. The other boy shrugged. "Well, you don't know if you don't try, so I'll be your friend!" He grinned, and the boy looked at him with a little shock. "My name is Lea." The blue haired boy smiled a little bit at him.

"I'm Isa."

* * *

For the readers who haven't played Birth By Sleep:

Lea = Axel

Isa = Saïx


End file.
